Director of Leadership Giving

The Peddie School in Hightstown, N.J., is seeking an
experienced, creative, team-oriented fundraising professional to
lead the next chapter of evolution for our philanthropy and
engagement team. In a newly designed position at Peddie, the
Director of Leadership Giving will be responsible
for leading a team of frontline fundraisers and research/prospect
management professionals as well as leading the philanthropic arm
of our team. The ideal candidate will have a contagious excitement
about and strategies for unifying and aligning fundraising efforts
across The Peddie Fund, gift planning, capital giving and endowment
giving, including designing, implementing and optimizing best
practices for prospect management and fundraising efforts. This is
a unique opportunity to build on the momentum from the historic One
Peddie Campaign. As a result, Peddie is eager to find a leader who
finds joy in being a compassionate and results-oriented leader who
is also highly creative and collaborative.

Founded in 1864, The Peddie School is an independent,
coeducational, college preparatory school of 535 students, grades 9
through post-graduate. Peddie is primarily a boarding school with
over 60 percent of students and 90 percent of the faculty living on
campus and a strong emphasis on admitting a diverse community of
students who demonstrate the highest degrees of excitement,
curiosity and character. Peddie’s extraordinary resources include
the highly professional, collaborative and dedicated faculty, an
innovative and rigorous curriculum and an attractive, 280-acre
campus with exceptional facilities located 25 minutes east of
Princeton and about an hour from both New York City and
Philadelphia.

Thanks to the generosity of Ambassador Walter H. Annenberg ’27
and other donors, Peddie now ranks among the most highly endowed
independent schools in the nation. Its $455 million endowment
enables the school to offer more than $10 million in financial
assistance to 35-40 percent of the student body.

We have recently completed a $106M campaign and the momentum is
palpable. We are creating this new position in an effort to align
and evolve our fundraising efforts in a more intentional way. This
chapter will be focused on strengthening our fundraising practices
for The Peddie Fund, gift planning, capital needs and ongoing
endowed funding priorities. Reporting to the Assistant Head for
Development, the ideal candidate must possess a deep commitment to
Peddie’s mission, demonstrate excellent listening and fundraising
skills, have demonstrated success as an exceptional relationship
builder and team player while also exemplifying strategic acumen to
design, lead and execute ambitious fundraising efforts. This
position will offer excellent professional development for the
frontline fundraising team with Plus Delta and we are committed to
providing growth opportunities at Peddie.

Essential Leadership and Fundraising
Responsibilities:

• Lead, manage, provide coaching to team of frontline fundraisers
  and prospect management professionals;
• Exemplify emotional intelligence, empathy, and active listening
  skills to build meaningful personal connections with colleagues and
  donors;
• Spearhead unified fundraising strategies to provide colleagues
  and donors with a cohesive, impactful giving experience;
• Nurture and steward a portfolio of leadership and major
  gift-level donors through tailored cultivation, engagement and
  solicitation strategies based on shared needs and passions;
• Work collaboratively with colleagues to create tailored
  invitations for support to inspire increased and recurring
  giving;
• Design, implement and utilize best practices for Peddie in
  prospect management, research and moves management in order to
  maximize philanthropic revenue;
• Partner with colleagues in engagement, gift planning, events,
  and marketing and communications to design integrated engagement
  and cultivation efforts;
• Foster a collaborative environment that shares donor
  strategies, information, and fundraising best practices among
  colleagues;
• Design ambitious yet achievable goals and strategies to help
  the team achieve them.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree or certification in
  fundraising, nonprofit management, or related field preferred.
• Minimum of 7 years of progressive experience in frontline
  fundraising roles, with a proven track record of increasing gifts
  from repeat donors and securing leadership ($2,500 – $49,999) and
  major gifts ($50,000-$1M) from individual donors.
• Effective at leading by example, with strong coaching and
  mentorship abilities.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the
  ability to build relationships and interact compassionately with
  diverse colleagues and constituents.
• Strong project management skills including the ability to
  develop and implement strategic fundraising plans for oneself and a
  team.
• Commitment to ethical fundraising practices and adherence to
  industry standards and regulations.
• Ability to travel as required for donor meetings and events.
  Hybrid work may be considered.